“We are glad to see that the doors of the Tunnel are closer to getting permanently shut.”GIULIANI SPOKESWOMAN SAMANTHA LUGO The Tunnel’s liquor license was suspended yesterday as state officials probed charges that the hip-hop nightclub is a drug supermarket.

The state’s order didn’t formally shut the West Chelsea club – it just said the Tunnel can’t sell liquor.

But the club was shuttered last night, and notices pasted on its entrances told customers of the State Liquor Authority’s decision.

The vote to yank the license was unanimous. The SLA said it is probing four possible violations of the state Alcoholic Beverage Control Law.

Alan Klinger, the lawyer for the club and its owner, Peter Gatien, said he’s appealing the SLA’s decision.

“We will seek to overturn it in court,” Klinger said.

He said he didn’t know if the club would open without liquor while the appeal is pending.

Klinger noted the SLA made its decision without a hearing.

“We do not believe the facts are there to suspend,” he said.

The SLA’s ruling came on the heels of a police raid early Saturday morning. Cops said they found “an open air drug supermarket.”

Fourteen people were arrested, including 10 accused drug dealers and club manager Mark Murray, who was accused of letting a minor into the establishment.

The suspension was based on a police investigation that began last January, when 18-year-old James Lyons fatally overdosed on the club drugs Ecstasy and “Special K” at the Tunnel.

The SLA charges that the Tunnel allowed drug trafficking.

“To protect the public health, safety and welfare, it is imperative that immediate action be taken,” read the SLA’s notices posted outside the club yesterday.

City officials – who have long sought to tighten rules at the club – said they’re pleased with the SLA’s decision.

“We are glad to see that the doors of the Tunnel are closer to getting permanently shut,” said Samantha Lugo, a spokeswoman for Mayor Giuliani.

Gatien – who also owns the club Limelight – was acquitted last year of federal charges that he encouraged drug-peddling at his clubs.

Gatien pleaded guilty last month to a charge of tax fraud, which could land him 90 days in prison. But the judge on the case signed a waiver allowing him to keep his liquor license.

His clubs have long garnered complaints from neighbors who say they produce too much noise and crime.

Gatien’s former right-hand man Michael Alig was sentenced to 20 years in prison after he admitted killing drug-pushing club kid Angel Melendez.